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Trump Media, primarily based in Sarasota, Fla., has solely 36 workers and misplaced $58 million final 12 months, the filings present. The web analytics agency Similarweb estimates that Reality Social’s visitors is lower than 1 % of Reddit’s, a platform that acquired $800 million in income final 12 months.
However a stock-market frenzy has supersized Trump Media’s worth to about $5.5 billion — greater than the market values of Macy’s, Columbia Sportswear and Alaska Airways, which make billions in income a 12 months.
The Washington Submit shared with Trump Media the numbers it meant to focus on on this report, all of which have been taken from the corporate’s filings. Trump Media spokeswoman Shannon Devine responded in an announcement: “Reality Social simply efficiently launched as a public firm, with a dedicated and increasing viewers of hundreds of thousands of customers, so it’s no shock the partisan activists at The Washington Submit — already the goal of ongoing authorized motion for its defamatory reporting on us — would gin up this form of ridiculous hit piece.”
Trump Media sued The Submit for defamation final 12 months, saying the information group had reported incorrectly on allegations regarding its financing. A federal decide in Florida lately dismissed the case however mentioned Trump Media might amend its criticism if it believes it could actually state a viable declare.
Trump is Trump Media’s greatest shareholder, with 57.3 % of the corporate, or 78.7 million shares — a stake price about $3.2 billion primarily based on the inventory’s closing worth Friday.
By an “earnout” provision, Trump stands to obtain one other 36 million shares if the worth stays above $17.50 for 20 days, which might occur as quickly as April 26 and would elevate his whole stake to $4.7 billion.
A six-month “lockup” settlement says Trump can’t promote or switch his shares till Sept. 25 — or probably just a few days earlier, if the inventory hits a sure worth threshold. Trump might ask the corporate’s board to waive that requirement however has but to take action. The lockup additionally applies to firm executives and board members.
Three individuals on Trump Media’s seven-member board of administrators have been compensated with both inventory or money or each.
Devin Nunes, Trump Media’s chief govt and president, acquired 115,000 shares, price about $4.6 million. He was paid a $750,000 wage final 12 months that elevated to $1 million this 12 months.
Nunes, a former Republican congressman from California, additionally will obtain a $600,000 lump-sum “retention bonus” this month. A bonus settlement signed by Nunes mentioned the cash was designed to assist “make sure the continuity” of Trump Media’s enterprise.
Board member Eric Swider, who was chief govt of the particular function acquisition firm that merged with Trump Media, and Renatus, his consulting agency in Puerto Rico, acquired about 153,000 shares as a part of the merger deal, a stake price $6.2 million.
One other board member, Kash Patel, a former Nunes aide who served on Trump’s Nationwide Safety Council, was paid $130,000 final 12 months as a part of a consulting settlement along with his firm, Trishul. A submitting says Patel additionally serves as a “nationwide safety adviser to [Trump] as a personal citizen” and receives fee for that service from Trump’s Save America political motion committee.
The opposite 4 board members — Trump’s former commerce consultant Robert E. Lighthizer; Trump’s former Small Enterprise Administration chief Linda McMahon; the Louisiana legal professional W. Kyle Inexperienced; and Trump’s son Donald Trump Jr. — weren’t paid final 12 months, although a submitting mentioned the board might give itself “inventory as non-cash compensation … every now and then.”
One former board member, Dan Scavino Jr., a longtime Trump aide who led his White Home’s social media operation and is now advising Trump’s presidential marketing campaign, was paid $240,000 final 12 months by means of a consulting settlement along with his firm, Hudson Digital. Scavino will even obtain a $600,000 retention bonus this month.
Trump Media additionally issued a $2.2 million “govt promissory observe” to Scavino. The corporate gave comparable promissory notes to different executives, which routinely transformed on the day of the merger into inventory. The filings don’t specify whether or not Scavino’s observe was transformed.
Trump Media’s chief monetary officer, Phillip Juhan, acquired 490,000 shares, price $19.8 million. He was paid $337,500 final 12 months, and his wage jumped to $365,000 when the merger closed. He final labored because the finance chief of a sequence of health golf equipment.
Chief working officer Andrew Northwall acquired 20,000 shares, price $812,000. He was paid $365,000 final 12 months. Beforehand he labored at Parler, the social community that was common amongst pro-Trump rioters on the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Juhan and Northwall additionally will obtain $600,000 retention bonuses this month.
Different executives will obtain a complete of $1.24 million in bonuses. They embrace chief know-how officer Vladimir Novachki, who additionally acquired 45,000 shares, price $1.8 million, and basic counsel Scott Glabe, who acquired 20,000 shares, price $812,000. Glabe served as an affiliate White Home counsel underneath Trump.
Trump Media co-founders Andy Litinsky and Wes Moss, who met Trump on “The Apprentice” and helped launch the enterprise in 2021, acquired a mixed 7.5 million shares by means of their partnership, United Atlantic Ventures, a stake price about $304 million.
Arc World Investments II, the most important founding investor in Digital World Acquisition, the corporate that merged with Trump Media to take it public, mentioned in a submitting it acquired 13.3 million shares, price about $539 million. A earlier submitting by Trump Media mentioned Arc would obtain 9.5 million shares.
Arc and Digital World are concerned in a authorized dispute concerning what number of shares Arc is owed. Arc is managed by Digital World’s former chief govt Patrick Orlando.
Trump Media mentioned it had helped fund its operations by issuing 19 convertible notes since 2021 in trade for loans with a complete face worth of greater than $40 million. The holders of these notes, most of whom the filings don’t determine, can convert the unpaid principal into inventory. The corporate mentioned a number of of the notes had been amended or prolonged since they have been issued, and that it had an “ongoing disagreement” with one noteholder over their “differing interpretations of sure phrases.”
The corporate additionally mentioned it had issued convertible notes to unnamed traders for “working capital functions” over the past quarter of 2023, and that greater than $1 million of the notes remained excellent by the tip of the 12 months.
The Trump Media deal sits on the middle of 4 ongoing lawsuits, all of which have been filed inside the final two months:
- Trump Media and Digital World sued Arc and Orlando in Florida, saying their “irrational and disturbing habits” had “imposed large prices” and induced “in depth reputational hurt.”
- Litinsky and Moss’ United Atlantic Ventures sued Trump Media in Delaware, saying Trump had pushed a “last-minute inventory seize” that will dilute their shares. Trump is scheduled to be deposed in that lawsuit this month.
- Arc sued Digital World, its chief govt and three board members in Delaware, saying that they had labored to deprive Orlando of hundreds of thousands of shares.
- Trump Media sued Moss, Litinsky and Orlando in Florida, accusing the co-founders of mismanaging the corporate with a “poisonous company tradition” and in search of to drive the forfeiture of their shares. The Delaware decide within the United Atlantic Ventures lawsuit mentioned at a listening to April 1 that he was “gobsmacked” that Trump Media filed this swimsuit when the dispute was already enjoying out in his court docket.
Digital World mentioned it spent $19.6 million on “authorized investigations” final 12 months, principally attributable to its $18 million settlement with the SEC, a Trump Media submitting reveals.
Trump Media additionally agreed final 12 months to pay an unnamed legislation agency $500,000 for providers, the submitting mentioned. In November, the agency was issued a $500,000 convertible observe with a conversion worth of $10 per share; that stake is price $2 million right now.
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